Coming Back
by Maelynn Meep
Summary: What if Reinette hadn't moved the fireplace? How would the Doctor get back? The most obvious way of coarse! Well... for him... Alternate ending for The Girl in the Fireplace.


**Coming Back**

_By Tuba321_

**A/N:** This is something I was thinking about. What would have happened if Reinette hadn't of had the fireplace moved. How would he get back? The most obvious of ways. Well, for him.

**Disclaimer:** Don't arrest me. I say not of ownership.

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**T**o be fair it was no-one's fault. Actually it was _someone's_ fault. It was his. 'Love conquers all' they say. Ha! Like love could conquer a 3000 year difference in time. Between him, Rose and the TARDIS. Well, and Mickey. Still his fault, he knew the window would close. He knew there'd be no way back. Oh well, he's gotten out of worse odds before.

The Doctor scanned everything. For what he wasn't sure of. He wasn't sure of anything at the moment. Just that he felt numb inside. Yeah, he liked Reinette but still. No ship. No adventure. No Rose. That was more then he could bare. He still didn't want to be domestic. Or mess up the timeline. So, can't marry Reinette. That would've been his emergency action. But, no. Can't mess it up too much.

His last stop to scan was Reinette's room, the sonic screwdriver buzzing. A lovely room. Nice clock, though broken. Nice bed. Nice-- FIREPLACE?! He scanned that too. It only _looked_ like the old one. He wondered why--

"What are you searching for?" Asked a voice.

The Doctor sighed and looked back at the elegantly dressed Reinette. "A way back." He walked over to the fireplace and added. "Why did you copy the old one?"

She walked over to stand next to him. "My mother kept the house. She wanted the fireplace, though I wanted to bring it here. I had it rebuilt so it would be like having it here."

He concluded his scanning, finding nothing. He turned the screwdriver off.

Reinette came over to look at it, still in his hand. "What is it?"

"It's like a tool that you use here." The Doctor smiled. "Like a hammer or axe, but more tech-_y_."

"Tech-y?"

"Short for technology. Gosh, technology! Computers! CD-Players! Watches! Cameras! Or my favorite... the i-pod." He laughed. "Then you take them and throw it all together and you get a 52nd century, watch-drive! It's fantastic!"

Reinette was staring at him. The Doctor stopped and frowned. The first thing he said in his usual hyper personality, and she didn't seem to notice.

She stopped staring with a question. "I thought you had a traveling device?"

"Yeah. The TARDIS."

"Can't you not call it back?"

His jaw dropped. This was one of the rare moments where he didn't say a word. She smiled at him with that I-can't-believe-you-didn't-think-of-that face.

"Alright, let's get on with it." He said.

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"Is he coming back?"

Rose had heard that about... 38 times now. It bugged her. Mickey could come up with some other questions if he wanted to. But, _nooo_ he just kept asking like an idiot who well... never gets the answer he wants.

Actually, all Mickey wanted was a reply. She hadn't answered him. Not once. He would have thought she was a mute if he didn't know her long enough.

He stood up and walked over to the TARDIS. "Think we could fly this? Pick him up?"

Rose actually looked over at him. "I don't think we know enough to work it."

She was right. Mickey had hoped that they would know enough to combine their knowledge. But, there must have been way more then they knew to know how to run the TARDIS.

Having nothing better to do, Mickey leaned on the blue-wood paneling of the box.

Only to fall on his but.

The TARDIS dematerialized. Rose jumped up and watched the ship disappear fully giving one last mechanical wail before it left them completely.

Mickey got up. "What does that mean?"

Rose thought about that. If the Doctor could call the TARDIS-- "I- I'm not sure." She replied softly, sadly.

She was sure of the options though. It could mean the Doctor would get the TARDIS and pick them up. It also could mean them being stuck there forever.

Rose hoped it was the first.

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The TARDIS was rematerializing. Having hooked up the sonic screwdriver battery to the key, the Doctor had managed to bring his beloved ship back to him. He told almost everyone in the huge mansion _not_ to touch the key.

Reinette walked over to him. They were outside, on the lawn. It seemed more peaceful then inside.

"So this is your wonderful ship?" Reinette studied the increasingly solid structure. "It's a box."

"You should see the inside." The Doctor smiled joyfully.

At last the box was a whole. He immediately ran over and slammed the doors open fully. Reinette followed slowly. "The inside is bigger than the outside?"

Not even minding being asked the common question, he replied. "Yep. I told you she's wonderful." Walking over to the console, he hugged it.

Reinette gave him a confused look.

"Sorry." He patted the console and turned back to Reinette. "Do you want to come with? A life of adventure? Fun?"

Reinette seemed to think about that. As she was thinking the Doctor could tell something was wrong with the TARDIS. She didn't like Reinette.

That's when Reinette said the most surprising thing that he could imagine. "No."

"W- What?" He said, clearly off guard.

"No." She said again. "I have a career. A home. A family. I can't abandon it." She kissed him on the forehead. "Good luck, my Doctor." With that she left.

The Doctor stood there for a minute, dumfounded. Which was unusual for him. He shook it off enough to remember that he had other people waiting on him.

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Silence. It had filled the deck where Rose and Mickey were since the TARDIS disappeared. That had been 7 hours ago. That meant the Doctor had been gone for 12.

That's when they heard it. A mechanical, wheezing sound. Obviously alien. They looked at each other and silently smiled. The wheezing and groaning got louder. Loud enough for them to know where it came from. It came from the room where the broken fireplace stood. The sound stopped.

In front of the fireplace was the form of the TARDIS. The doors opened and--

"Doctor!" Rose cried, running up and hugging him. They both fell over in a heap, laughing. The Doctor laughing of joy and Rose trying not to cry.

The Doctor jumped up and looked at Mickey. "What no hug?"

"I'm not hugging you." But, the smile on Mickey's face was too big to miss.

The Doctor walked up to the TARDIS and gestured to go inside. "All aboard?"

The two ran inside. The Doctor followed asking, "So, where do you want to go next?"

**THE END**

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**A/N:** I admit it. I didn't like Reinette. She was too... perfect. Scary. Anyway, this idea came from when I was re-watching Father's Day. He did it then why can't he now? Anyways, if you review I'll give you a cookie.


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